Brewpub with no beer? WTF?!

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jfrizzell

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SHMBO and I went out of town this weekend and on the way home stopped at a brewpub about an hour from home for lunch. The waitress came to take our order and I asked what beers they had available. She said they didn't have any of their beers available! WFT? I was in utter shock and probably sat there with my mouth open for 10 seconds. She couldn't give me an explanation for why they had no beers available. So I asked what they did have on tap. Nothing... She said they had a problem with the CO2 / nitrogen system. At this point we should have just walked out, but we were hungry so I just ordered a bottle of Fat Tire.

After we finished our lunch and paid the bill. I walked over to the bar to ask the bar tender what was up. He seemed pretty ashamed of the fact that they didn't have any of their own beer and really couldn't give me a good explanation either. He said there was something wrong with the lines and they hoped to have it fixed in about a week.

How the hell does a brewpub go a week without any of their own beers available? You'd think that would be a priority to get that fixed ASAP. I'm still pretty blown away.

On a positive note, our trip took us to Wisconsin so I got a chance to try a couple of beers by Furthermore - Knot Stock, a pale ale brewed with cracked black pepper, and Fatty Boombalatty, a Belgian pale ale. Both were fantastic. Knot Stock on it's own was pretty peppery, but with a burger, it was great. Fatty Boombalatty was a great Belgian, very tasty. Before I ordered, I got a sample of Oscura, which is essentially a California common with coffee beans in the secondary. This was tasty also and had a great coffee flavor, but I thought the Knot Stock would go better with the burger. We stopped at a market and picked up a sixer of the Fatty and another mixed sixer of Knot Stock, Oscura, Proper (an English Ale) and Three Feet Deep (a stout with peat malt).

We also made it to New Glarus and sampled some of their beers and bought an assorted case - Staghorn Octoberfest, Fat Squirrel, Hop Hearty IPA and Uff-Da Bock. Their new brewery isn't open yet so we didn't get to tour it, but we drove by it and it's huge!
 
I live in Madison, so I'm a big fan of New Glarus, but have not heard of Furthermore. What city are they in?
Sorry to hear about your experience at the brew pub. That is very lame.
 
Hahah. I have two similar stories that have happened to me. Once I pulled up to Dairy Queen. Ordered a Chocolate Cone..."Sorry we're all out of Ice Cream". Another time was Dunkin Donuts. I pull up, "Medium Coffee please"...."Sorry we're out of coffee". :D

I suppose things could be far far worse. It's just funny in the context.
 
Hahah. I have two similar stories that have happened to me. Once I pulled up to Dairy Queen. Ordered a Chocolate Cone..."Sorry we're all out of Ice Cream". Another time was Dunkin Donuts. I pull up, "Medium Coffee please"...."Sorry we're out of coffee". :D

I suppose things could be far far worse. It's just funny in the context.

Local Papa John's when I was living in Baltimore:

Them: "Sorry, we can't make any pizzas today. Our manager forgot to order food."
Me: "Then why are you answering the phone?"
Them: "Huh?"


Them: "Sorry, we can't make any pizzas now. Our computers are down."
Me: "Are the pizza ovens computer controlled?"
Them: "No."
Me: "So... Nevermind."


Can't make this stuff up.
 
I used to manage a pizza delivery place.

Forgetting to order food is patently ridiculous.

Our computers were down from time to time, but we always had pencils and paper... if the oven's on, the pizzas are going out the door.
 
Maybe they had a major contamination problem or a CO2 line burst in an inaccessible spot. Any kegger knows how hard it is to find leaks.
 
I live in Madison, so I'm a big fan of New Glarus, but have not heard of Furthermore. What city are they in?
Sorry to hear about your experience at the brew pub. That is very lame.

Furthermore Beer: Welcome

They're in Spring Green, WI, but they're contract brewing on someone else's equipment. Their website shows where you can buy their beers. They're some interesting beers - I highly recommend them.

I'm drinking the smoked stout (Three Feet Deep) right now and it's great, if you're into that sort of thing.
 
Maybe they had a major contamination problem or a CO2 line burst in an inaccessible spot. Any kegger knows how hard it is to find leaks.

If I ran a bar that specialized in draft beer and my system was broken I would go out and buy a 20# co2 bottle, regulator and lines that day and run at least 1 keg off a picnic tap. It may not be ideal but "if you pour it, they will come" sounds appropriate.
 
I love me a smoked porter. If you haven't, you should give Stone Brewery's Smoked Porter a try. Yum!! I was telling my friends about this beer just before a recent beer fest, but couldn't remember the brewery name. Then I saw someone in a shirt of theirs and yelled out, "that's them! They're the ones with the killer porter!" Guy turned around to thank me. Turns out he's their brewer and was in town for the festival :)
 
Furthermore make some really good beer and some real crap. They have a coffee stout that rocks once it warms up.

BTW - how about a Brew Pb that can not sell it's own beer. I believe there is still a place in Great Dane West??? that legally can not sell it's own beer.
 
No, that changed about 6 months ago. It was a stupid law on the books that was stopping them, but that was fixed. But now they do also have to sell beers other than their own.
 
If I ran a bar that specialized in draft beer and my system was broken I would go out and buy a 20# co2 bottle, regulator and lines that day and run at least 1 keg off a picnic tap. It may not be ideal but "if you pour it, they will come" sounds appropriate.

Exactly! That would be a freakin' emergency. One way or another I'd be getting something on tap, if I had to run new lines or whatever. A week without any profits from your beer would seem like a killer.
 
can you find this in WI? I would drive up for a case :fro:

a little off topic but . . . I'm so glad I can always get stone. in fact the other day I found a place that still had some bottles of their 8/8/08 vertical epic! needless to say I picked up as many as I could afford.
 
I also live in WI and up until erarlier this year the law stated that a brewery may only have two establishments that server thier brew. This led to Great Dane Brewery having three restuarants with only two of them being able to serve their own brew.

...a few months, a bunch of lobbying and who knows what else later, the State of WI passed a law known to other brewers throughout the state as "The Great Dane Law". I don't know all of the specifics but the way I understand it, this new law allows more than two pub/restaurants but the problem with it is that it also changed many of the licensing rules and proceedures for brewers in the state as well. No one I've spoken to seems to be happy but Great Dane.

...my point? It is possible for the afore mentioned to happen, it just depends on the local laws and regulations.
 
Exactly! That would be a freakin' emergency. One way or another I'd be getting something on tap, if I had to run new lines or whatever. A week without any profits from your beer would seem like a killer.

Unless their system is contaminated by a bug. A few seconds of carelessness can spread it through an entire brewery.
 
can you find this in WI? I would drive up for a case :fro:

Not sure about Stone but you should try O'Fallon's Smoked Porter that took a gold medal at GABF in 2004. I am pretty sure most of their products are available in IL, not sure about WI.

Try our Beer!

And I must say that their Smoked Porter that was aged in 23yr old Pappy Van Winkle barrels was nothing short of amazing!
 
can you find this in WI? I would drive up for a case :fro:

You can find Stone's brews at Woodman's in Kenosha. I was there a few weeks ago and they were selling their IPA, AB, Ruination, and either the smoked porter or Levitation.

Just take 94 north get off at Highway 50, go east (right), and you should see the Woodman's from there on your left.
 
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